KYLE KAHKLEN – Poet –
© Marshall E. Peterson Jr.
Bio: A resident of the Inland Northwest for seven years, Kyle has been writing poetry seriously since his sophomore year of college. He is an EWU alumnus and works as substitute teacher in Spokane Public School. He has come to fall in love with the Spokane area and its artistic community after participating in weekly Broken Mic nights. He would like to thank Hannah for her inspiring work ethic and being the poet’s muse.
Talk to us a bit about community, about yourself as an artist, and about PorchFest, please…
I blame my friend Devin Divine, who sent me a message to come to a party. “Go get some treats and things! You’ll have a blast!” she said, “It’ll be fun!” she said. I went and all of a sudden I’m performing. THANKS DEVIN.
Usually, I go to Kendall Yards for food. There’s a farmer’s market every Wednesday that Hannah and I like to go to. Central Food and Brain Freeze Creamery are often the go-to favorites. I also enjoy biking through the neighborhood since it does not have too much heavy traffic.
Community, like culture, is a system of shared beliefs and likes brought about through various forms of communication. These beliefs can vary from interests to trades to even locations. As long as there are groups of people with beliefs, there will always be communities. The important notion of communication in community derives from the idea that people can share in their beliefs without prejudice; in contrast, people can also expand their own ideas by communicating their thoughts on their beliefs. Community really depends on the people that surround it and how they interact with others.
I hope to promote reading and writing around Spokane. I hope to explore other people’s arts and, in turn, hope to pass on some of my own. I hope PorchFest helps to expand art and neighborly events like it in Spokane
Well, I feel I’ve been a part of several different communities: websites, poetry, education, etc. Participation really includes anything I can do to allow that community to grow and spread; anything to help with events to share love of the community. For one, I’d love to showcase more poetry readings around Spokane. If that can happen, it might promote more readers and writers to showcase their talents.
Because I’m performing poetry. Oh, and I guess because I like West Central and everyone else should.